Colouring books for adults gaining popularity

A popular children’s pastime is making the transition into an adult leisure activity.

Bookstores across the nation are seeing colouring books for adults fly off the shelves.

“We sold colouring books and a lot of adults bought them, but the term colouring books for adults is kind of new,” says independent bookstore manager Mike Hamm.

At the top of amazon.ca's bestseller list are two colouring books by Scottish illustrator Johanna Basford.

Hamm says he can't keep them in stock

“I think we have about four outstanding orders. We've been waiting for maybe, close to a month now to see some more stock, but the publisher, I think, is struggling,” says Hamm.

Hamm says he noticed more people asking for colouring books in store early this year.

“I think it's a reaction to all the electronic choices that we have, as far as entertainment is concerned. It's something tactile, it's something that has a nostalgic aspect to it,” says Hamm.

Designer Lisa MacPherson says colouring helps her to reduce stress.

“It's easy, you can multitask while you do it, you can sit with friends and do it and chat and, I dunno, there's maybe just something nice about filling up shapes with colour,” says MacPherson.

Many of the books designed for adults feature intricate and detailed designs.

“They're very beautiful, they're very intricate. A lot of colouring books that we used to see in grocery stores have large spaces, these have very small spaces,” says Hamm.

Art therapist Amy MacKenzie says colouring of any kind can help reduce feelings of anxiety. She prescribes colouring for patients of all ages.

“It could just be very much based on a colour, so you could have just a very simple circle or any kind of shape that you might decide, or think of a colour that might be sort of uplifting for you that day,” says MacKenzie.

MacKenzie says between the colours and the sensory stimulation of moving your hand, colouring can be very relaxing.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Sarah Ritchie